I love you too Naruto Oneshot
by iSungMyOwnSong
Summary: When Naruto leaves for training with Ero-sennin, what can Naime do ? Reminice.


I smiled to myself as I thought of Naruto. The way his hair would shake in his eyes as he laughed, or how his azure eyes sparkled in the sunlight. My God, how I missed him. The longing was almost too much to bear.

He had been away for far too long, and it was making me spiral down into a deep hole. I didn't know if I could ever get out. The desire to see him again burned in me until one day, I suddenly snapped and broke down into a fit of sobs.

He promised me he'd be back soon…

He promised me. And Uzumaki Naruto never broke his promises. That was his nindo.

_*Flashback*_

_I laughed gleefully, my long curly red hair swung from side to side as I ran down the street. My orange eyes danced in their sockets as I searched for my best friend, Naruto. He was my entire world. I depended on him as much as I loved him._

_Case and point, I needed him. A lot._

_The strange thing, however, was that he was nowhere to be found. I couldn't find him anywhere. I searched all over, including his rooftop. It was as if he vanished in a puff of smoke. Poof! Gone._

"_Naruto-kun!" I yelled throughout the streets of Konoha. Where in the world could he have gone? We were practically glued to the hip. This isn't good. Had something happened to him?_

'_Don't think like that, Naime. You're just going to psyche yourself out and panic and panic and panic until you explode.' The very thought intrigued me. What's it like to explode?_

_My thoughts were interrupted as a certain orange clan ninja came running toward me, smile apparent on his face. _

"_Naime-chan!" He reached me and hoisted me up by my hips and twirled me around like a rag doll. "Naruto-kun, put me down!" I laughed. This was just a daily occurrence for me these days. _

_He set me down and flashed me a warm, inviting smile. I returned it with zeal. "Where were you? I looked everywhere for you and I couldn't find you." 'Which is strange, considering he's practically neon.' I thought, chuckling. _

_He lead me through the crowded streets, trying to protect me from the hoard of people rushing towards us._

_Always the gentleman. _

"_I was talking with Jiraiya-sensei." His tone sounded serious and stern, not something I was used to from the golden-locked genin. "What about?" I inquired._

_We meandered through the street for a while until we came upon the park. We wandered toward our tree and sat down, basking in the shade and coolness the canopy above us brought._

_We sat in silence for some minutes. I enjoyed the silence, just happy to be with him. He turned his head toward me and sighed heavily. "Naru...what's wrong?" My eyebrows knitted together, showing my growing concern._

_He swallowed hard and looked into my eyes. Those beautiful, sea blue eyes penetrated into my very soul and left me absolutely breathless. He was overwhelmingly gorgeous. _

"_Nai-chan.." He started. He looked pained and saddened. What was wrong with my Naru? "I'm leaving." _

_My eyebrows shot up and I opened my mouth to speak, but he continued on. "Ero-sennin wants to help me train, to help me grow stronger so I can bring Sasuke home." His fists balled at his sides, but his eyes never left mine._

_Those beautiful, beautiful eyes._

"_Naruto..let me come with you!" I blurted. His eyes became wide and all was silent once again. He suddenly lifted his arms and rested his hands on my shoulders. He looked me dead in the eyes, and my breath caught in my throat once again. _

"_No, Naime. I refuse to let you get hurt. That is something I wouldn't be able to live with. You are the only person that I truly have in this world. Knowing you got hurt, and knowing I could've stopped it.." His voice cracked and he trailed off._

"_Naruto..I'm a big girl, I can handle myself." I stood my ground, not backing down for any reason. He growled and shot up, running his hands through his hair and on his face, pacing. He whipped his gaze toward me and emitted this power and fury towards me._

_He spoke low and strong._

"_You will not come with me. You are the only thing I have in this world. The ONLY thing. I can not lose you. Don't you understand? I'd rather die than know you were hurt. You are my life, Naime-chan. I can't let you come."_

_I was stunned. At first, I thought this was a question of my abilities. I passed my Chunnin exams while he didn't! Why should he be worried? But it wasn't about that. It was about the fact that he didn't want to lose me. He cared, he really did._

"_Naruto-kun.." I trailed off. I stood up with him and took his hands in mine. I raised my gaze to meet his. "Naruto, if it really bothers you this much, I won't tag along. I understand. I wouldn't want you to feel saddened." I flashed him a smile._

_He returned it._

_He lifted my body into the air, once again, and laughed happily. "Thank you, Naime-chan for understanding." He placed me back on my feet and I hugged him. "I love you Naruto, I don't want you worrying." He returned my embrace with soft touches. "I love you too Naime. More than you know." He tightened his arms and we stood there embracing for the longest time._

_We finally released each other. _

"_Naruto..when are you leaving?" I cocked my head to the side._

_He sweat dropped and started to scratch the back of his head. "Well ya see, funny story about that…" He didn't finish his sentence. My eyes narrowed as I glared at him._

_He coughed nervously and looked around for something to save him. "Uhm…tomorrow morning?" My eyes widened in shock. I felt my eyes start to water._

"_How long are you going to be gone?" I grabbed onto his jacket, frantically looking into his face for any kind of answer. He sighed and mumbled something incoherently. "What was that?" I asked._

_He sighed, again, and looked me in the face. "Two to three years…maybe more. It all depends on me and my ability to learn and grow." _

_I gasped and stepped back. No, no this couldn't happen. He couldn't leave me. He won't. I won't let him. _

"_Naruto, you…you cant!" I cried out, tears threatening to spill over. I clutched myself as I fell to my knees as I let the sobs take over. "Naime-chan, no!" He ran to my side and held me as I wept. _

_Being in his arms, I felt warm and safe, like nothing could ever hurt me. Hearing him say those reassuring words sent shivers down my spine as he tried to soothe me. _

"_I'll come back. I promise you this. I promise I'll be back soon, and we can be together again, okay? No tears, no tears…" He wiped my face clear of any liquid. I nodded weakly. I had to stay strong. For him._

_He smiled warmly at me once again. "Come on Nai-chan, lets go back to my place for some ramen and a movie and we can stay up all night and just spend time together before I leave. Sound like fun?" He tilted my face up to look at him._

_I smiled slightly as he stroked my cheek. "Sounds wonderful."_

_We spent all night together, laughing and crying together, making more beautiful memories together. It was one of the best and worst nights of my life. And my biggest regret since he has left…_

_Is not telling him how I felt. _

_*End flashback*_

I looked up from under our tree in the park, thinking of how things here have changed.

I cut all of my hair. It is now straight and to the nape of my neck in the back, and to the base of my neck in the front. It's still red, but its just shorter. I've gotten taller and curvier and wiser.

The atmosphere in the entire village just…changed since he left. The light left and there wasn't a spark anymore. Naruto was the life and soul of this entire community. After he left, all of the spirit went away.

I sighed laid my head back on the trunk of the tree. Oh Naruto, where are you? I wish he was here and holding me like he did on that day. I eventually decided, after much reluctance, that I needed to get my ass up and do something social.

I hoisted myself off of the ground and went searching for another body of life. I wandered the streets of Konoha, thinking of Naruto protecting me from the crowds of bodies rushing towards us. Mumbled 'Gomensai's were said and 'Excuse me's as well.

A smile lights up my face as I see one of my favorite people.

"Lee-kun!" Lee is the only person that can cheer me up when I'm feeling down about Naruto. He's been my rock, and I will be eternally grateful for him.

He turned over his shoulder and his whole face seemed to brighten. "Naime-chan!" It was almost like a movie. We both ran at each other, but sadly, we collided a little too hard and came crashing to the ground…

Hard.

His foot was in my face and my head hit the concrete. The sharp, throbbing pain seared throughout my head and spread to the rest of my body. It soon turned into a dull pain, but that doesn't mean that it hurt any less.

"Naime-chan! Oh no, gomensai, gomensai!" He crouched down and cradled my head in his hands and tried to soothe me as I groaned. "Never, and I mean NEVER, are we ever going to do that again..." I told him grumpily. I sat up and massaged my abused temples.

"Are you okay, Naime? I never meant to hurt you , I am so so so so sorry! Please don't be angry. Do you need to go to the hospital?" Lee rambled on and on and continued to ramble until I silenced him.

"Lee-kun, I'm fine hon. Just a little bump on the head, is all." I smiled up at him and started to stand, but I stumbled, but Lee caught me. He flashed that award-winning smile. "One must be more careful, Naime-chan." He said, helping me to my feet.

We dusted ourselves off and suddenly became aware of the odd stares we were getting from onlookers. I coughed awkwardly. "You think we should get out of here?" "Yes, let's go." He grasped my wrist and literally dragged me across the road.

"Where are we going?" I wondered aloud. He giggled and said, "Why, Ichiraku's of course!" My mood lifted even more. "Food!" I squealed. I sped in front of him, leaving him in my dust.

I arrived at the stand panting and out of breath, but smelling the aroma of noodles and beef made my mouth water uncontrollably. Lee came up chuckling behind me. "Naime-chan has been training I see." I smiled and nodded vigorously.

I flipped the cloth curtain of the ramen stand and sat my bottom down on one of the middle seats. Lee took his seat next to me, wiggling his self into position.

Ayame, a long time friend, came up and took our orders of two beef and shrimp ramens and scuttled off into the back with her father. I turned towards Lee and opened my mouth to start talking, but something caught my eye.

Something….bright.

Something….neon.

Something….orange.

My breath caught in my throat and I felt it tighten. The orange legs moved, and the curtain moved up and revealed an older, more chiseled Naruto. The sun glowed on his tanned skin, making him look luminescent. His sky blue eyes looked up and locked with mine the moment he walked in. The smile on his face glowed white and wide.

It took all of 3 seconds for him to realize what was going on. He walked towards me and just stood in front of him. "Naruto." I said simply. He smiled and took my face in his hands.

He leaned it gently and placed a soft, innocent kiss on my lips. I smiled into it and returned it with passion. All feelings ever felt, went into that kiss. It was short but amazing.

We broke apart and smiled at each other. Then, the three most perfect words uttered out of his mouth:

"I love you."

In that moment, everyone disappeared and the only people in the room were them. Chances were taken, and chances were rewarded. All was well in Konoha. All was well in my heart.

"I love you too."

"Awwwwwwww this is so cute, Naime-chan!" Lee squealed. Moment=ruined.


End file.
